Track and Field Historian Mike Fanelli Dies of Cancer at 67

Mike Fanelli, the owner of one of the largest track and field memorabilia collections in the United States, died on Saturday after a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. He was 67 years old.

For over 50 years, Fanelli collected running-related memorabilia, which he stored in the “Track and Field Garage” at his home in Sonoma County, California. The expansive collection features over 4,000 artifacts, including the meet program from the first indoor track meet held in the United States in 1868, as well as every issue of Track and Field News and Runner’s World.

Fanelli made his mark on the sport of track and field throughout his life. He represented athletes as an agent, coached the Impala Racing Team, and served as the USATF National Cross-Country chairman in the 1990s. He’s also the namesake for the Mike Fanelli Track Classic, held at his alma mater, San Francisco State University, each spring.

But Fanelli’s impact, perhaps, is best exemplified by the connections and friends he made along the way. Until just days ago, Fanelli would routinely post track and field trivia facts to an audience of over 4,000 Facebook friends. If you look closely, you’ll find legends of the sport reminiscing about old races or giving their two cents in the comments. 

Fanelli’s wife, Renay Weissberger Fanelli, released a statement on Monday announcing his passing: “It is with unbearable sadness that I share with you that Michael has passed away from brain cancer, at home, surrounded by loved ones. While he was a public figure in many ways, he was also a very private person. Because of that, he chose not to share his diagnosis broadly, preferring to live his life as if he was living, not dying.”

Fanelli lived his life fully up until his last moments. Last month, he completed his goal of running 115,000 miles in his life, dutifully logging each run in composition notebooks. 

In 2021, Fanelli told Runner’s World why he feels cataloging running history, with the help of his track-nerd friends, is so important. Running history, he noted, is not particularly well recorded.

“I refer to it as ‘cultural storytelling,’” he said. “When a particular culture wants to pass down their history over the years, and it’s not something that can be transcribed otherwise, this is our opportunity to do that.”

posted Tuesday November 28th
by Runner’s World